A public consultation is now open for 10 weeks as part of the development of the board’s corporate plan for 2023-26 which will set out the strategic direction of the organisation over the next three years.

Max Murray, chair of the board, said: “The Probation Board is committed to working in partnership to help us reduce reoffending, tackle the root causes of offending behaviour and make communities safer.

“This plan provides an important opportunity for us to hear from stakeholders and communities about the services that are being delivered and how we can shape services over the coming three years.

“The challenges faced over the last corporate planning period have been unprecedented. This plan has been developed against the backdrop of continuing challenges.

“The pandemic, pressures on budgets and the fact that our staff are working with more people who are suffering from poor mental health and addictions are impacting upon how we deliver services.”

He added: “While these issues pose particular challenges for PBNI there is also an opportunity for us to implement learning from the last number of years and continue to be innovative in developing our practice.

“This plan sets out our desire to continue to be an organisation which is innovative, creative, collaborative and solution focused. Working alongside our partners we want to develop and continue to improve our services to provide a high quality, probation service to all.”

Chief executive Amanda Stewart said: “Probation’s strength lies in its ability to work in partnership with a range of organisations including statutory partners such as the prison service, police service and courts as well as the large network of voluntary and community groups across Northern Ireland.

“If we are to be effective in preventing people from reoffending we need to intervene at the earliest opportunity and that means working alongside a range of partners and within local communities. Only by working together can we effectively change lives for safer communities.”